Why Cigarettes Cause Blood Clots

August 30, 1987|By Ronald Kotulak and Jon Van.

Cigarette smoking has long been known to be a major risk factor in heart attacks, but scientists always have been puzzled about how smoke causes damage. Vanderbilt University researchers now think they have found the mechanism. A study of six habitual smokers and six nonsmokers shows that increased platelet activity among smokers possibly predisposes them to blood clots. Platelets regulate clot formation, which are a primary cause of heart attacks. ``Our findings indicate that chronic smokers-even those who look and feel healthy-have an active disease in their blood vessels,`` said Dr. John A. Oates Jr., chief of medicine. Platelet activity quickly returns to normal after smoking is stopped, he reported in the journal Circulation.

DYSTROPHY VICTIMS HELPED

The steroid prednisone can significantly delay the crippling effects of the most common form of muscular dystrophy, a 15-year Johns Hopkins study has found. Victims of Duschene`s muscular dystrophy, a muscle-wasting disease that affects young boys, usually are confined to wheelchairs by age 11. Patients treated with prednisone were able to walk and function independently for an average of two years longer than patients not receiving prednisone, said Dr. Daniel B. Drachman. Reporting in the Archives of Neurology, Drachman cautioned that the treatment is experimental and that steriods can cause serious side effects.

ECTOPIC PREGNANCIES RISE

Ectopic pregnancies, the leading cause of death of women in the first three months of pregnancy, continue to increase at an alarming rate. The Statistical Bulletin, a publication of Metropolitan Life Insurance Co., has reported 75,000 ectopic pregnancies for 1985, more than four times 1970`s number. An ectopic pregnancy occurs when a fertilized egg becomes implanted outside the uterus, usually in a Fallopian tube. Major risk factors associated with ectopic pregnancies are sexually transmitted diseases, pelvic inflammatory disease and age of mother. ``As women continue to delay childbirth, and the rates of sexually transmitted diseases continue to increase, the number of ectopic pregancies are expected to rise,`` said Margaret Mushinski, author of the report.

ENDING PSORIASIS HEARTBREAK

Patients with severe psoriasis who fail to respond to other medications may be helped by cyclosporine, the drug used to prevent the rejection of transplanted organs. Northwestern University researchers found that four patients responded rapidly to cyclosporine and were cleared of scaly psoriasis patches within three weeks. One patient developed mild kidney problems, which were reversed with a lower dose of cyclosporine, Dr. David D. Picascia reported in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.

PUSHING CHILD EXERCISE

The American Academy of Pediatrics is offering a sports-participation brochure as part of its campaign to have school districts improve physical-education programs for students. Citing studies showing that about half the nation`s schoolchildren are not getting enough exercise to develop healthy hearts and lungs, the academy has issued a policy statement calling on parents and pediatricians to urge the school districts to improve physical-education programs. The academy recommends programs that emphasize ``lifetime``

activities such as cycling, swimming, running, fast walking, aerobics and tennis. Traditional team sports such as football, baseball and basketball should be deemphasized, according to the academy. The free brochure can be obtained by sending a business-sized self-addressed, stamped envelope to American Academy of Pediatrics, Dept. C-``Sports.`` P.O. Box 927, Elk Grove Village, Ill. 60009-0927.